THE CARNIVOROUS CAT

NATURE'S MAGNIFICENT FELINE

Lithe and graceful, mysterious, regal and enigmatic, the cat is one of the most successful species of animal on the planet. Thriving for tens of millions of years in regions and conditions as wide ranging and diverse as the tropical jungles of South America and Southeast Asia, the arid deserts, fertile plains and equatorial forests of Africa, the mountains and woodlands of North America, the snowy winters of Siberia and the icy slopes of the Himalayas, the cat is surely one of Mother Nature’s most perfectly designed and adaptable creatures.

From the largest lion to the most petite and delicate of housecats, the unique and distinctive qualities of the feline are unmistakable. Equipped with superior eyesight, a keen sense of hearing, an acute sense of smell, lightning quick reflexes, strength that belies their size, and remarkable athleticism and agility, the cat occupies a place at or near the very top of the food chain in nearly every environment it inhabits. Its natural stealth and speed, along with its needle sharp claws, powerful jaws and razor sharp teeth, as well as its legendary curiosity, all combine to make the cat one of the Earth’s consummate predators.

All of these qualities contribute to the fact that the cat’s most natural proclivity is geared toward the hunting and dispatching of their primary food source, their prey. This innate inclination is evident in even the tiniest of kittens and cubs, who, from almost the moment they learn to take their first wobbly steps, start inquisitively exploring every corner of their environments, as they begin to stalk, chase, pounce and attack anything and everything in their world that moves, including things like their mother’s tail, their littermates, or, when nothing else will do, even their own tails.

This combination of the cats’ most basic instincts along with their unique physiology, results in a creature that was born to prey upon, capture and consume other creatures, making it one of the world’s premier carnivores. The cat is, in fact, what’s known as an obligate carnivore, which means that the particular dietary nutrients it requires, are only found in sufficient quantities in the flesh and bones of its prey - that is, in whole, raw, animal based foods.

Fossil records indicate that the prehistoric forebears of modern day cats may have first appeared on Earth as far back as over 30 million years ago. Unlike many other animals that are today virtually unrecognizable in comparison to their ancient ancestors, the basic design and distinguishing characteristics of the cat species have changed little over the course of many millions of years.

As the poet E.E. Cummings wrote, “A cat is a cat is a cat.” Clearly, Nature’s original, basic blueprint for the cat was so remarkably viable and successful, that even through countless eons of time, there have been relatively few evolutionary modifications to the basic feline archetype. Present day wild and domestic cats of all different shapes and sizes each bear a striking and unmistakable resemblance in more ways than one, not only to one another, but also to their prehistoric forebears who lived and died many millions of years before them.

The fact that the cat is without a doubt one of Nature’s most ancient and classic examples of the ultimate carnivore, should leave no doubt in our minds as to the appropriate manner in which they need to be fed. And yet astonishingly, cats who have been fed an unnatural conglomeration of cooked, canned, dried and over-processed petfoods, continue to fill the waiting rooms of countless veterinarians’ offices the world over, waiting to be treated for a variety of health challenges that have been brought about, at least in part, as a result of being fed an utterly inappropriate diet.

All carnivores - from sharks to raptors, from porpoises to weasels, from hyenas to polar bears, from seals to foxes, from otters to crocodiles, and from wolves to snakes - are made to eat and digest the raw meat, bones and organs that make up the whole carcasses of their prey. And cats are certainly no different in this respect than any other carnivore. Feeding a carnivore anything that is cooked, canned, dried or ground is simply unnatural for that animal, and over time, puts a strain on its system. Such a chronic strain often results in the kinds of health problems from which too many present day cats are suffering.
By modeling their diet upon the diet of small cats who hunt for their food in the wild, we humans may feed our domestic feline companions the diet that is most appropriate for the carnivores they are, while simultaneously affording them the myriad health benefits that such natural, wholesome foods provide.

The prey model diet for domesticated cats comes closer to the diet Nature feeds her carnivorous felines than any other, and if you are inspired to learn more about how to feed your cat this way, please click here.

The articles on this website contain research, opinions and personal reflection that may be of use to you in learning more about how and why to feed your pet a species appropriate raw diet, and are provided for informational purposes only. This information is educational in nature, and is not intended to replace professional veterinary medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. All the information found on this site is to be used at your own risk. The author cannot be held responsible for any unfavorable results that may arise from the use or misuse of any of the content presented herein.